Governance & Decision Making

Governance and Decision Making

Delta Decision Making Bodies Document

An integral part of the Delta Program philosophy is the belief that Delta is a cooperative effort of students, parent(s)/guardian(s), and staff.  This belief is at the heart of Delta’s system of governance.  Since its inception, the Delta Program has included students, parent(s)/guardian(s), and staff members in the school’s decision making process. Involving students in the governing process allows them to feel truly invested in their education and gives them invaluable understanding of leadership and decision making they can use later on.

Opportunity for active involvement in the growth and maintenance of the Delta Program is built into the structure of the program.  All members are encouraged to take active roles in the following components of the Delta Program:

Advisory Council

Advisory Council is made up of members representing the whole Delta community: fourteen students, three parents/guardians, three teachers, and the program Director, who is a non-voting member. Students on Advisory Council represent either their clumps or the entire school. Each clump independently determines the manner of selecting their representative; it may be through election or random selection. At-large (all-school) representatives are selected randomly from a pool of student volunteers.  All Delta students are eligible to serve on Advisory Council, regardless of grade or years of experience at Delta.

Advisory Council meets monthly and advises the Director on the creation and implementation of new school policy and discusses and attempts to resolve concerns of Delta students. Advisory Council makes decisions by reaching consensus among voting members. Meetings are open to the public; many students attend even if they are not voting members. Advisory Council makes recommendations regarding scheduling, budget use, curriculum, and school environment. Students traditionally hold four main leadership positions on Advisory Council: Chairperson, Co-Chairperson, Treasurer, and Secretary.

All School Meeting (ASM)

All School Meetings are weekly forums where the entire student body comes together with staff to discuss current Delta issues, concerns, and upcoming events. Any Delta community member may bring an issue to ASM for discussion.   

Clump

Each Delta student is assigned a faculty advisor; a “clump” is a group of ten to fifteen students who have the same advisor. Clumps meet each week to discuss school issues and concerns and to plan shared activities. Often, the same issues are discussed at clump, ASM, and Advisory Council, with the smaller clump setting allowing for more in-depth discussion of the problem at hand. Clumps also often participate in community building activities throughout the school year. Students in the same clump form a bond with one another through community building and frequent meetings, and students sometimes see their clump as their Delta family. At the end of each school year, students have the option to request a new advisor.

Hiring Committees

Students, staff, and parent(s)/guardian(s) have the opportunity to be actively involved in the selection of Delta’s staff.  Students, staff, and parents make up hiring committees that interviews and selects new staff members. When a vacancy occurs, students and parents volunteer to serve on the committee.